Advice please :)

Hi everybody!

Iím not a newbie to PB (been eating primally since last October and plan to do so for life!) but I am a newbie to posting to the forum. I visit the forums to read often but wanted some advice from my fellow PBíers.

I have yo-yoíd since I was 14, done all of the fad diets, and had never been able to keep it off (now I know why-thanks Mark!). My heaviest being 199 in HS and throughout my 20ís fluctuating between 150-180 after that. On my last fad diet (in í07) I went down to 133-with no excercise(Iím 5í3) and was the ďthinnestĒ I had ever been as an adult. Of course, I was unable to maintain that and was starting to creep again until I found PB.

Long story short, I didnít weigh myself when I started PB but Iím assuming I was about 150. I still havenít weighed myself -Iíve always hated the scale! I measure with clothes but I know that I went down some a few pounds at the beginning.

I havenít lost a lot of weight (been maintaining) since Iíve started PB but I do feel great. (I was the only one who didnít get a cold this past winter and I will never listen to CW ever again). I do want to lose about 15-20 pds and the reasons I think I havenít lost the pds are:

1) I donít work out consistently that way I should (walk/sprint 1x)/lift things) and I am starting to do that this week
2) I donít know if I have my fat/protein/carb ratios right. (I really think Iím not enough fat)
3) Iím eating too many nuts and dairy
4) Eating too often (still eat 3 times a day)

Personally, I've never found the 'ratios' to be important--I focus on getting enough protein and limiting my carbs, and the fat usually takes care of itself with my use of butter, EVOO, and the meat. To me, your key points are the last two.

I like your menu, but at your current size, that would be far too much food for me. It's not a popular idea here, but calories DO count eventually--I'm someone who can gain on almost zero carbs! If you want to lose, I'd cut out the 'snacks' and the nuts first and see how that helps.

I suppose being obsessed with quantities and measures is a bad thing, but it'd be useful for getting an idea of what you're eating.

For losing weight it seems the best strategy is to be slightly calorie-restricted (not too much) and low on carbs. I'd not have thought you were overdoing the carbohydrate. The apple would be highish and the chocolate, too, depending on how much you ate, but I don't think anything else there would push the figure up. But pop the data into Fitday and see what you get.

I expect the right exercise will help, as you say. i don't think there's any proof that two meals a day are better for weight loss than three. There seems to be some evidence that four or more is too many, but two or three seems to be "normal". Skip one meal occasionally if you really don't feel hungry?

I totally suggest tracking your food (just eat normally but plug it in) for a week or so so you can "see" what your ratios are like. That's the starting point! It's not that tracking should be a daily thing forever, or even often, but it's an educational tool that gets us to see what is in the foods we eat. Unfortunatley I think a lot of us are pretty far removed from that, so it's good knowledge. you'll find eventually you won't track because you can TELL what foods you need, or what you're short on, LOL.

Some of the things that I know can effect fat loss for a lot of people are nuts and dairy. That isn't everybody, it's an individual thing, so it's something you'll have to figure out for yourself (basically remove one and see how it goes!).

Also, I would add taking measurements (not just using your clothes) so you can get a picture of how your body composition is changing. You may find you're losing in one place and not another for a bit, so it seems like you're not progressing, when you are. The body is funny that way. I'm with you on ditching the scale though, it's a bad method of measurement frankly.

I still eat three times a day as well. I don't think that's a big deal. And I think, until you get to know your macros well, and what fat/carb/protein ratios work best for YOU, don't mess with two meals, or IF or any of that. you really need to have your body functioning fully on burning fat for fuel and getting the right nutrients before you do that kind of thing or your body will be stressing to function, which isn't what you want.

Anyway, those are my ideas to help you figure out what works best for you!

Good luck!

"Boy I got vision and the rest of the world is wearing bifocals" - Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Emmie: I do agree that calories do count to a point and that I may be eating too many! (because of the nuts & chocolate) so I am going to cut out them out as snacks for sure.

Lewis: I will definitely start tracking on FitDay...I feel like it will help me see the bigger picture. I agree that being obsessed with quantities and measures is a bad thing, but it would be helpful for me at this point to get an idea of what I'm eating.

Minxxa: I agree about the nuts and dairy and I think I may be one of those people that it does affect! I do like eating 3 times a day but really do need to know and learn my macors and need to have my body function on fully burning fat for fuel. I will definitely take measurements, I think I tend to forget about the power of the tape measure!

Dragonmamma: Eggs! I think I am going to turn to these as a "snack" instead

That's about as much as I eat in a single day, and I'm a 37 y/o 200-or-so lb male (I'm assuming you're a female with those stats and goals - apologies if I'm drawing incorrect conclusions) so, yeah, I'd say that's a lot of chow. I swear by fitday, personally.

That is also basically what I eat, I've been steadily losing weight but I started at 220, male. Ditch the nuts and go to two meals a day at least a couple of times a week. Maybe throw in a day or two of VLC just for grins, and start sprinting!